In the last decade, mobile device communication has increased exponentially. The worldwide shift from basic-feature phones to smartphones combined with a continued growth in tablets, a resurgence in laptops with tablet-like capabilities, as well as expanding machine-to-machine (M2M) applications are key factors driving increases in smart traffic. M2M refers to applications that enable wireless systems to communicate with similar devices to support global positioning satellite (GPS) navigation systems, asset tracking, utility meters, security and surveillance video. M2M connections include wearables such as fitness bands which are being developed with increasingly complex functionality, thereby further contributing to increasing mobile communication trends. As an example of a high-end wearables use case, livestreaming of a GoPro video camera on a cellular network may generate as much as 5 MB of mobile data traffic per minute.
Other general factors include the increase in mobile users, the increase in mobile connections, faster mobile speeds, and more mobile video. As one specific example of mobile growth, according to the annually published index, by 2019 the number of mobile users will increase from 4.3 billion last year to 5.2 billion.
In addition, thanks to the convergence of pervasive mobile communications and fast-growing online social media networking, mobile social networking is penetrating into everyday life. Facebook® posts and Twitter® Tweets can be updated within seconds and Pinterest® can be navigated conveniently and remotely on a wide variety of mobile devices. Pinterest in particular has shown impressive momentum by growing its audience of daily mobile users from 8.0% to 11.4% over the last year. Social media applications, particularly of interest to younger users, consume enormous amounts of data especially when causing the transmission of video content.
As a natural consequence of such explosive growth in mobile communication, mobile data traffic is predicted to grow by over 100 times in the next ten years. Further, video transmission alone is expected to increase by 14× over the next several years with further estimates that in the near future video content will occupy approximately 70% of mobile communication traffic. Such incredible growth poses significant challenges for cellular networks and network providers as the growth must be managed and access must be seamlessly provided to end users who demand greater transmission speeds and availability.
It is with these concepts in mind, among others, that various aspects of the present disclosure were conceived.